Empathy
by Inu Kaiba
Summary: Kaiba gets drunk, and Jounouchi is there to take him home. Jounouchi Katsuya x Seto Kaiba


xAmax: I am actually ridiculously proud of this piece, and I really hope I conveyed the emotions of this idea well. It's not what I intended, but well enjoy. It's Jounouchi Katsuya x Seto Kaiba, for the first pairing of Round 4 of the Yu-Gi-Oh! Fanfiction Contest.

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Jounouchi Katsuya was almost 100 percent sure what he was seeing was an illusion. He'd be willing to bet three of his best Duel Monsters cards that the man sitting at the other end of the bar was a relative, perhaps, a near replica even, someone who looked like him…

But the man could not be Seto Kaiba. There was no way that big hoity toity hot shot would be here, drinking some sort of beer/vodka contraption. Or at least that's what he assumed it to be, or remembered, if he had heard the words correctly. He was willing to throw in a Scapegoat that there was at least beer in it, judging by the liquor colour.

He was about to go over and question Mr. Moneybags himself, bets be damned, when the flickering television screen positioned above the bar caught his attention. Turning to face the screen, his eyes widened at the site.

In big black letters read all the reasoning Jounouchi needed to know that really was Seto Kaiba sitting over there, staring down into a glass full of liver poison. **Mokuba Kaiba, aged 18, due to take over as the Kaiba Corp. vice president in a few months, passed away yesterday evening at DC Hospital.**

The volume was muted, but evidence and pictures went onto show that he was killed in a car crash, although Jounouchi would've bet some more Duel Monsters cards that it was no accident. Staged, of course. He wasn't as stupid as people thought he was.

Another image flickered across the screen. A white sheet draped over a body. Mokuba Kaiba was dead.

A sickening feeling flickered through Jounouchi Katsuya. The little ten year old boy he had known, the one he had thought honest to God was the only thing keeping Kaiba sane, was dead. He felt like the bottom of his stomach had dropped out. He felt sick, and insanely cold.

This must be nothing compared to what the man 9 bar stools away from him was feeling. And yet he was calmly knocking back the pale yellow liquid as if nothing had happened.

Jounouchi's gaze once upon rested on the tall, thin chestnut haired man. He tried to imagine how Kaiba must be feeling. What if Shizuka had died? Well, for starters, he wouldn't be here in a bar… The only reason he was here was to drink away his sorrows. Shizuka had left town to pursue her dreams. She no longer needed him for protection. He was devastated to say the least.

But Kaiba was here because his brother was dead. It was quite a shocking move on his part, nothing Jounouchi would have assumed he'd have done in the past.

And Mokuba hadn't died right away either. The torture Seto must have felt, wondering if Mokuba would make it through alive. And then to have all the hope ripped away. It was a wonder he hadn't killed himself, after all the pain and grief he must have suffered.

He met Kaiba's eyes. Seto didn't bother to look away. Jounouchi felt pain grip his heart, squeezing tightly. Kaiba, the usually stoic man, looked as if his entire family had been run over by a car. Shit, that was a really bad analogy, because that was what had actually happened, after all.

Upon closer inspection, he realized tears were freely flowing down Kaiba's cheeks. He was no longer looking at Jounouchi, but instead gazing at the television, where the image of Mokuba's body, covered in a white cloth was still visible. A reporter was surely reading the details of the case, but the television was muted. Nothing could be heard.

Jounouchi imagined Kaiba felt like that television, lost in a world without sound. Nothing must matter to him anymore. His only family was dead. Kaiba was practically a-sexual, never having loved anyone. There was no one to help him get through this.

Tears poured down his cheeks as well, as he again imagined what the chestnut haired man must be going through. Standing up, he closed the distance between himself and Kaiba, until he was sitting on the stool to the left of him.

"Seto…" he said cautiously, voice barely above a whisper. He wasn't sure what to do, but he had to do something. The torture the poor man was going through…

"What do you want, mutt?" A scratchy voice replied. Seto looked him right in the eyes as he said this. The tears had stopped flowing; evidently he must be embarrassed to be sitting there by himself, crying in the middle of a public place. He was Seto Kaiba; he would need to be in control at all times. He made no move to wipe the hastily drying tear tracks away though, and chose to instead take another sip of the alcohol sitting in front of them.

"Do you… do you need anything? I… heard what happened… and…" Jounouchi was cut silent as Kaiba looked at him again, the intense sadness replaced by fury. His hand gripped the cup hard, his entire body shaking with rage.

"I don't need ANYTHING from you!" he spat, words laced with venomous anger. "I don't want your sympathy, you filthy mangy dog." He added this after several deep breaths. The shaking had stopped, his grip on the cup eased slightly, but was still rather tight. Jounouchi knew the offer had set him off, but he also knew that none of Kaiba's associates, none of all their former friends would come to the rescue.

But he would. Because someone had to.

"No Kaiba, I'm not offering you sympathy…" he said, voice cracking in the middle of his sentence. "I'm here to offer you empathy, and do anything… ANYTHING I can… because if Shizuka died, I don't know what I'd do. I'd feel really, really sad. And I think… that must be how you feel. I'm here for you."

The tears that had barely finished moments before, were once again pouring down Jounouchi's face. He uttered a sob, and buried his face in his hands. He understood Kaiba's pain, he could feel it, imagine it… And yet, the stubborn, prideful man refused to be helped… or so he thought.

Seto Kaiba leaned over tentatively, unsure of what to say or do. His own tears had resumed as well, and a lone one slid down his cheek, and landed on Jounouchi's lap. Jounouchi, feeling the water on his knee, opened his eyes to see Kaiba's face inches from his own.

He knew Kaiba wasn't gay, and he knew he wasn't gay either. But he kissed him there, because he knew Kaiba needed the comfort and the closeness to reassure him Jounouchi really would do anything for him.

The kiss wasn't passionate or intense on his part, but Kaiba really gave it his all. He clawed at Jounouchi's hair, and their salty tears mixed together until it was no longer possible to tell if the tears on their own faces were theirs. Kaiba was kissing him in a hopes that the pain would go away, and Jounouchi tried his best to absorb it in that moment, to help Kaiba feel better, if only for a split second.

Jounouchi kissed Kaiba back with a different emotion, hoping to convey the intense need he had to help the desperate man. He imagined Kaiba must feel it, but if he did, he chose to ignore it. He clawed away, deepening the kiss, and sliding his tongue into Jounouchi's mouth viciously. He no longer had any idea what he was doing, but this made him feel good. He was drunk, they were both drunk, it was to be expected.

Finally, when he could no longer breathe properly, Seto Kaiba pulled back. Staring into Jounouchi's face, a smiling face, devoid of any negative emotions… He wasn't going to use this against him, he wasn't going to hurt him, he wasn't angry, there was no smirk there. He wrapped his arms around Kaiba then, because he knew Seto needed the contact and the care more than ever.

Kaiba let him, although he did not return the gesture. He was confused. Why… why was Jounouchi doing this? Didn't he have some ulterior motive? His shoulders had been tense for a long time, but Jounouchi did not move. He would wait until Kaiba realized that there was no malice or ill intention meant.

Time passed, gradually. Nobody looked at them. It was near 3 am at a grungy bar in the poor end of town. Who would notice two men hugging?

Finally his shoulders slumped. He gave in. Seto Kaiba believed that Jounouchi Katsuya wasn't there to reap the benefits, laugh, antagonize him, use this against him, or anything. Jounouchi was a good person, and he'd been wrong to say those nasty things all along. More tears poured down his face, and he wrapped both arms around Jounouchi and clung with all his might.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, and Jounouchi smiled, stroking his hair. They stayed that way, motionless, as Seto's breath gradually slowed until he fell asleep.

Jounouchi picked up the boy in his arms, paid their tab, and headed towards the exit. Thankfully he wasn't too drunk, and had enough to afford both. It was a small bar, and the liquor was cheap, so it made sense the bill would be small.

He opened the door, and found Kaiba's limo waiting. Of course, it was all the way across town. It made no sense that Kaiba would leave himself with no way to get home, drunk off his ass, in the wee hours of the morning. He knocked on the window, and it lowered.

"I.. I'm here to bring Kaiba home."

The limo driver nodded, and Jounouchi heard the click of the lock. "Very well Mr…?" The question hung in mid air, the driver had no idea of his name.

"Katsuya. Jounouchi Katsuya. We were friends years ago."

The limo driver smiled. "I've been his driver for years," he said, as Jounouchi opened the door to the back seat. "And I've never seen him with a friend. Thank you, he could never need a friend more."

"Sir, there's no need to thank me." Jounouchi said, gently laying Kaiba down on the back seat. "This is something I want to do."

The driver nodded, knowing there was no need to say anymore.

The pair was dropped off at the Kaiba mansion. Jounouchi opened the door, carrying Kaiba through the house, until he reached the man's bedroom. He lay Seto down in bed, and tucked the covers around him. He was about to turn around and leave, when he realized that he had no way of getting home, it was 4 in the morning, and he was just as drunk as Kaiba, although better at holding down his liquor. He would later learn that was Kaiba's first glass of alcohol, and it made sense now why the man had deviated from his usual routine. Alcohol, it seemed, gave Seto Kaiba emotions.

As an afterthought, he pulled back the covers, kicking off his shoes. They landed on the carpet with a soft thud. He climbed into bed beside the CEO of Kaiba Corp, and pulled the coves back up over the pair. He reached over and wrapped his arms around Seto Kaiba, not feeling odd in the slightest.

Jounouchi imagined that this was what love must be like, and he didn't mind it. In desperation, Seto Kaiba had accepted Jounouchi Katsuya into his life, in an attempt to make everything better. And Jounouchi Katsuya? He didn't mind one bit. He wanted him there.

He had never expected to fall in love with Seto Kaiba that night. He mused later that there was a fine line between hate and love, and the pair had crossed it that night, desperate and in pain, drunk out of their minds. And neither seemed to care.


End file.
